Trekipedia

Nanoprobes

The basic building blocks of Borg assimilation, these microscopic, self-replicating robots permeate the bloodstream and carry Borg technology throughout the body. Nanoprobes attack the victim on a cellular level, latching on to the blood cells and taking over their functions, rewriting their DNA almost instantly.^[2] The subject’s skin around the injection site turns gray within seconds, and develops a distinctive mottled pattern. This stage of assimilation leaves a subject passive and suggestible, paving the way for further alteration with cybernetic implants at an assimilation chamber.^[1]

References

• ^[1]ST-08: Star Trek: First Contact
• ^[2]VOY-168: Scorpion